Holding Out For A Hero
by PrincessOfTheOcean
Summary: Rei and Usagi have a fight at the Hikawa Shrine so Usagi leaves will the Honō wa Gōmon get her before Rei has a chance to?


**Holding Out For A Hero**

**By Horihachi**

**Disclaimer: Usagi, Rei and Ikuko are not mine the belong to the beautiful Naoko Takeuchi …but I take full responsibility for Akuma and Wanryoku, I like them a lot…I may even use them again in other stories :) Oh and Akuma's looks are completely coincidental to Naoko Takeuchi's Kunzite.**

**UsagixRei**

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"Usagii!" Rei Hino screamed as she nearly tripped over all her manga books strewn all over the floor of her once neat room, catching herself on a now empty shelf.

"Usagi, what the hell are you doing here and what have you done to my room?" Rei snarled glaring at the innocent blonde looking up at her.

"Hi Rei, I'm reading" Usagi simply stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Usagi, you have destroyed my room" Rei continued to snarl, completely at loss to what to do.

"Oh Rei, you overreact too much! This is nowhere near as bad as my room" Usagi giggled still looking up at Rei.

"Usagi, get out!" Rei yelled at the small blonde, she watched Usagi's smile faulted and turn into a hurt expression.

"I'm sorry Rei, I didn't mean to, I just-" Usagi bit down on her lip, Rei would sneer at her if she told her the real reason she came, so she went back to an excuse she had used in the past. "I mean, I just want to read!" She saw something flash across her raven haired friends face but before she could identify it Rei had a stony expression on her face again.

"Usagi, just get out" she whispered her voice seemed to fail her and she looked away, why was she so damn weak? Usagi always seemed to get to her.

"Rei? Are yo-"

"GET OUT!" Rei screamed, her face contorted with fury and something else Usagi couldn't identify.

Usagi sighed and got up from the bed and left through the open door sighing leaving a fuming Rei to clean up her room.

She really didn't understand she just wanted to see Rei but she couldn't tell Rei that, what would happen, it was just better to watch from a distance, she shouldn't be thinking like this anyway, what would her mother say? She had to admit she did go overboard with the manga, she just always really got into it and Rei had so many good ones but maybe she should go back and apologize, she looked back over her shoulder and decided against it, Rei would probably need to cool off a bit before she saw her again. So she just continued walking down the long stairs to the bus stop lost in deep thought.

After a while she looked up just as the bus rumbled past, she was a little way from the bottom of the stairs and she doubted there was any way that she could get to the bus stop in time, but she had to try, it was the last bus and walking through the dark dangerous alleys to get home wasn't exactly appealing to her.

"Wait for me" she cried out as she began jumping down two steps at a time but as she got to the last couple of steps she tripped and began rolling down the remaining steps, twisting her ankle in the process and then finally coming to a stop at the very bottom of the stairs she looked up just in time to see the bus pulling away from the bus station, the last bus for that evening she would have to walk home and it wasn't exactly a safe route especially during the night hours and it was getting dark fast, there had been many reporting's of young girls being assaulted around this neighbourhood and now she had a hurt ankle and bleeding knee, she knew she would be an easy target. She looked around whimpering whilst trying to come to a decision, going back to Rei's was not an option she couldn't get up those stairs with her ankle in this state and she doubted Rei would be happy to see her after their parting, crying now she decided she would just have to walk home.

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Rei sighed, looking around at her room, her bed was still full of books but at least her floor was clear well most of it anyway she couldn't stand having her books all out of order on the shelves so instead they were in a couple of dangerously tall piles so that she could sort through them later. Turning around she looked at her bed and sighed again grabbed a couple of her books and put them on a vacant spot on her floor, as she walked back to her bed to get more books she flicked on her small television just for background noise, drifting off into her thoughts as the dull murmur of the television filled the room. She cleaned up the books from her bed, she supposed she shouldn't have been so harsh on Usagi, it wasn't her fault really, well yes it was for messing up her nice clean room but that was just how Usagi was, enthusiastic, eccentric and utterly adorable, oh god where did that though come from?

"Stupid, stupid" she muttered to herself, but it wasn't like her blonde haired princess did it on purpose. She looked out her window, nothing but darkness, it was pitch black and it must be cold out there, the wind was blowing fiercely through the cherry blossom trees outside.

"I hope she got home alright" she murmured to herself. Sighing she sat down on her bed and turned towards the television, the news was on and a middle-aged dark haired woman was reading a report.

"…young women are encouraged to finish their business well before nightfall and to be off the streets as there has been a sudden rise in crime focusing on young women at the moment, the police are working hard to trace the culprits behind this but they are proving to be elusive at the moment. What the police can tell us is that the culprits seem to be targeting young women between the ages of fourteen and twenty-two…"

Rei bit her lip and frowned, Usagi did usually call her to let her know she got home alright if she left after dark, but their parting from earlier that evening hadn't exactly been a happy one, so maybe Usagi had decided not to call and just leave Rei alone for the night, but could she really take that risk? Maybe she should call Ikuko, Usagi's mum, but she didn't want to worry her if Usagi was just being her usual dawdling self, she could leave and try to find Usagi herself but if Usagi was home she would put herself in unnecessary danger and Usagi would hang her for that, she smiled in despite of herself and jumped when the phone started ringing, laughing at herself she went to pick up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Rei? Its Ikuko, I was just wondering if Usagi is with you?"

"Uhh, no sorry she isn't" she replied whilst biting her lip, she continued to listen to Ikuko jabber on about how unreliable Usagi was, fear consuming her, Usagi had left quite a while ago, what happened to her?

"Ikuko, I'm really sorry, but really have to go, it was nice talking to you!" Rei blurted out quickly and hung up before Ikuko had a chance to respond, she hated that Ikuko always complained to her about Usagi what was she meant to say? She and Usagi fought a lot, that was true enough but deep down they loved each other.

"Oh my princess" she murmured as she grabbed her coat her mind made up, she had to find Usagi before she got hurt.

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Usagi was still limping home with tears in her eyes holding onto the wall next to her for support everything had been so frightening already and she wasn't sure how much more she could take, it was so dark now and she was still nowhere near being at least half way, she had already walked through a lot of alley ways and streets with a couple of young guys that would shout obscene things at her, but she had left them far behind now, she was now all alone in the dark with an injured ankle and to be honest being alone made her more scared than being yelled at, at least then she knew where they all were but now anyone or anything could be hiding behind anything, but she had to keep going no matter how terrified as soon as she got home this would be nothing but a bad memory. As the street ended she came across another alley way a long one that she had to go through. Usagi bit her lip and took a deep breath and started to limp through the dark long alley way.

"Ahh!" Usagi let out a piercing scream as she tumbled over something and not being able to hold herself she fell flat on her face scraping her knees even more and her elbows.  
That's it she was done, she couldn't go on anymore, normally she wouldn't give up so easily, perhaps the fight with Rei had taken something out of her. At the thought of Rei the tears she had been holding back spilled over she curled herself up into a ball and sobbed. She didn't know how long she lay there curled up on the cold cement until she heard footsteps and laughter.

"Hey mate, you haven't seen anyone new?" a deep masculine voice rang out through the darkness making the young girl hiding in the shadows freeze.

"No, no one is stupid enough to stay out anymore" came another voice this one dripping with malice making Usagi shiver with fear.

"Pity people here watch the news; maybe we should move cities and start afresh somewhere else" they both laughed.

As they unknowingly walked closer towards the small girl frozen in fear yet desperately trying to hide herself more successfully, finally she pulled herself from her frozen state and tried to move behind the big garbage bag she had initially tripped over, she knelt a little to try and crawl behind it forgetting that her ankle was badly injured and had gotten worse from the little pressure she had put on it whilst trying to walk home, as she had nearly settled she lent on her bad ankle and fell into the garbage bad whilst letting out a small cry of pain, she watched as the two sillouettes of the men froze and turned in her direction.

"What was that?" the more masculine one asked.

"Probably a cat or something, don't worry about it, let's just go find some fresh meat to tear apart" he snarled already annoyed that he had missed out on one nights 'hunt'.

"No it was bigger than a cat"

"Does it really matter? Come on the night is wasting away"

"Just hang on a minute" the larger silhouette stated as he began to move closer towards Usagi.

The petite girl tried to make herself as small as possible but it was in vain as the man picked up the garbage bag effortlessly his eyes widening as he looked down at her.

"Well, well, well what have we here, it seems you were right my friend, it seems out meat has come to us" the thinner silhouette said a maliciousness in his voice that made Usagi's hair stand on end as she looked up in fear at the two men standing above her. What could she do? She had no way of escaping they were both bigger and no doubt faster than she was. She was powerless against them.

"So little one what's your name" the bigger one sneered as the smaller man leant down so he was level with her face.  
He pulled out a lighter from his pocket and flicked it on; the sudden flame illuminated everything around it, he was pale with cold icy blue eyes his long silver hair trailing down his shoulder his figure petite and very feminine her eyes travelled to his partner tall and more masculine he was powerfully built the rest of him was in shadows but she could tell he had short dark spikey hair, her deep blue eyes turned back to the icy blue ones.

"Please, let me go" she whimpered she could barely speak.

"No I don't think we can do that, you know who we are don't you?" he smirked at her as she shook her head "Well then we ought to introduce ourselves shall we my name is Akuma and this is Wanryoku together we are known as Honō wa Gōmon, her eyes widened and bit her lip, she knew who they were, they were infamous in the lower parts of Tokyo, they were ruthless tortures constantly keeping the police running in circles, they were masterminds, never any survivors.

"Do it then, do it you bastards" she snarled at them, recklessness seizing her she looked him right in the eyes he was smirking at her, almost laughing.

"My this is a sudden turn of events, where did all this spice come from?" he laughed the taller man Wanryoku joined in with him and bent down to her height as well, his hand twirling through her long blonde tresses his hand moved towards her face and as skin hit skin he felt her stiffen, he smiled.

"She's a fighter Akuma, you can have this one, and I know how you enjoy a game."

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Rei stealthily moved through the shadows, almost becoming a shadow herself, it was late and she knew if Usagi was still out here she could be in huge trouble, suddenly she gave a cry of pain and doubled over something was wrong with her little princess she had to find her and fast Rei bolted not bothering to imitate the shadows anymore her urgency to get to Usagi far too great, she wasn't all that confident with the twists and turns of Usagi's way home but somehow something was calling to her, making sure she was going the right way.

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She would not cry, she could not cry, she would not die a weak cry-baby, she would go down with a fight, her stomach was hurting so bad from being punched and kicked so much but even so, she slowly got herself up into a standing position, facing him with her head held high she lunged at him as best she could with her ankle she was fast but he was faster he whipped around and slammed her into the wall all the air she had regained from her last assault left her and she saw stars as her head banged against the wall she looked into his cruel icy eyes and she knew what was coming, his sneering face leaning in closer to hers.

"No, please" she whispered knowing it was no good he would not show her any more mercy than he had shown his previous victims, he smirked at her plea and lent closer tracing his tongue delicately down her neck moving lower as he kissed her collar bone his hands running wild up and down her body as she winced in protest.

"Come on Goldilocks; give us some enthusiasm" he sneered at her.

"Never" she whispered savagely and spat in his face. He shoved her harder against the wall and she gave a small cry, he slowly edged closer to her face, she shut her eyes not wanting this, her first kiss was going to be taken by some psychotic freak just for fun.

"Rei" she whispered her eyes still closed waiting for the contact that never came instead a huge force knocked the both of them over and he released her as they fell.

"Get away from her" a husky out-of-breath voice snarled, Usagi dared not look up, it couldn't be, her knight in shining armour? It couldn't be her? She looked up and sure enough there she was in all her glory panting with pure hatred on her face.

"Wanryoku" Akuma called snapping his fingers "I believe we have another morsel, it seems to be our night tonight!" he laughed as the taller man appeared from the shadows.

"I will not let you take her" Rei snarled at them "no matter what" and with that said she lunged at them taking down Akuma and slamming his face into the cement floor, she then started her battle with the taller man, hand-to-hand combat seemed to be his advantage, but Rei with a smaller body was quicker she just couldn't allow herself to be grabbed by him, she mentally thanked her grandfather for forcing her to do judo and karate for years, she quickly side-stepped around him as he lunged for her and she tripped him up, she heard a crack as his head hit the cement floor and turned to Usagi only to find her in the arms of the silver haired man holding her around the neck with the lighter next to her hair.

"Come a step closer and I will light her up" Rei froze, how could she have let this happen, she thought she had taken him out.

"Please let her go" she pleaded.

"No, my best friend is dead and you killed him, now I will kill her and you can live with that torment" Usagi as scared as she was frowned his voice was not how it was before cocky and cruel it was laced with fear and had a slight shake to it now and she knew what she needed to do, Rei couldn't help her this time, she had to help herself "see now watch the bitch burn" he laughed as he flicked the lighter and caught Usagi's hair on fire, the smell was awful and as the fire spread he loosened his grip on her and with the last of her strength she doubled over and flipped him over her shoulder and she heard a loud crack. Her hair flipped over his and his hair and face immediately caught alight, she staggered backwards onto the wall and slid down it absolutely spent, the last thing she saw was Rei's concerned face in the firelight calling to her…

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Usagi opened her big blue eyes and looked around the room didn't seem familiar, this wasn't her room she looked to right and saw Rei sleeping half on the bed half on the floor in a sitting position it suddenly all clicked the events from last night this was the Hikawa Shrine and she was in Rei's room, she felt her hair and it came away in burned shred then looking down at Rei again she noticed that Rei's arms were covered in small scratches, bruises and a couple of burns, she let out a dry sob, how could she have let this happen to her best friend, she closed her eyes and started shaking uncontrollably and sobbing.

"Hey, hey, hey, my princess, its ok, nothing to worry about now" Rei whispered it seemed she had been woken up by Usagi's tears, Rei enveloped her into a tight hug and sat rocking her until Usagi calmed down.

"Rei, oh Rei, I'm so sorry about everything, I really am I am so messy and clumsy and always late and you got hurt because of me-"

"Shh, shh, Usagi calm down you're perfect just how you are, don't apologize for being yourself and as for me being hurt, this isn't the worst injury I've ever gotten, so stop worrying ok" Rei smiled down at her friend.

Usagi nodded "Thankyou Rei. I don't know what I would do without you" she paused deliberating, coming to a decision she looked directly into Rei's beautiful amethyst eyes "I love you Rei" she whispered, she watched as Rei's eyes widened, she looked away "I'm sorry it took me this long to admit it, I'm sorry it took until seeing you hurt to say it"

Rei just continued to watch her, contemplating her next move. Slowly her hand reached up and cupped Usagi's face and lent in close to her and whispered "I love you to, my princess" and with that she closed the gap between them. It was sweet and they could have stayed like that forever, nothing mattered anymore, not the events of last evening or last night, not how their parents and society would react, just the two of them in complete and utter bliss.

"We'll face this together Princess, we'll get through it" Rei whispered.

"We always do" Usagi replied.

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**Well that took longer than it should have I must say! Please feel free to critique this as much as you want :) I'm not sure I like this one too much, I'm not a massive fan of portraying Usagi's character, but I really wanted to do this fic once I got into it…can you believe this was originally going to be very short and a UsagixMamoru fic and was also meant to be a songfic haha, oh how things can change!**

**Oh yeah and the names of the Honō wa Gōmon have special meaning too! Akuma: Devil and Wanryoku: Brawn, I chose these because Akuma was meant to be the evil mastermind behind the plot whilst Wanryoku was to carry it out but is just as ruthless as Akuma. Honō wa Gōmon means The Flaming Tortures!**

**So please tell me what you think of it :)**

**Horihachi xx**


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